New Orleans Creole Eggnog
"This eggnog is great for a crowd during the holiday season. It's very rich so a little goes a long way.. Usually, 4 to 6 ounces per person is enough for a serving. The best part is that you can alter the liquors you like or make it without any liquor, too. Use brandy, or substitute Calvados, Cognac, Frangelico, Godiva, or Praline. Have a 4 gallon bowl or container handy to mix the eggnog, and plan to make this 30 days before your party so it seasons well."
PREP TIME 30 Min
READY IN 30 Days 30 Min
SERVINGS & SCALING
Original recipe yield: 48 servings
INGREDIENTS
30 eggs
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon allspice
1 teaspoon ground mace
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon freshly ground nutmeg
1 tablespoon freshly ground cinnamon stick
1/2 cup pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Angostura bitters
1 cup bourbon or blended whiskey
1 (750 milliliter) bottle dark rum
1 (750 milliliter) bottle almond-flavored liqueur, such as Amaretto
1 (750 milliliter) bottle brandy
6 quarts heavy cream
DIRECTIONS
Beat the eggs with the white sugar, and light and dark brown sugars in a stand mixer until completely blended. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl. Stir in the allspice, mace, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla.
Pour the bitters, bourbon, rum, almond-flavored liqueur, and brandy into a large, 4 gallon bowl or food safe bucket. Stir in the egg mixture until thoroughly blended. Pour in the heavy cream and continue stirring. Divide into smaller containers and refrigerate. Shake or stir the containers 2 to 4 times each day for 30 days.
Editor's Note
While the high amount of alcohol in this recipe will counteract any possible bacteria from the eggs, if making this recipe with less alcohol, you may want to consume within the week. If you are concerned about the safety of consuming raw egg, use an equivalent amount of pasteurized egg which can be found in cartons in most grocery stores near the eggs. 30 eggs would be equal to 7 1/2 cups.
Things to do with kids for Christmas, Make and decorate gingerbread people
Cookie Tips 102
Short cut ~ When your recipe calls for you to roll your dough into little balls this is a great time saver. I always roll my dough into a log the diameter
that is calls for, say an inch. Then I just cut off 1 inch pieces. I place these in the powdered sugar or what ever the recipe calls for or if nothing
just place them on the cookie sheet. When cooked, they come out as round as they would if you spend the time rolling them into little balls.
When your brown sugar is hard as a rock! Place your brown sugar in a micro-safe bowl with just a few drops of water. Microwave for 15 seconds. Remove and
mix, repeat if necessary but check to make sure that the sugar does not melt. If you cook it to long, it will turn into liquid.
I store my opened brown sugar in an air tight container. I place a piece of bread in with it, keeping it from getting hard.
Deck the halls with bought of holly,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Tis the season to by jolly,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Don we now our gay apparel,
Fa la la, la la la, la la la.
Troll the ancient Yuletide carol,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
See the blazing Yule before us,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Strike the harp and join the Chorus.
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Follow me in merry measure,
Fa la la, la la la, la la la.
While I tell of Yuletide treasure,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Fast away the old year passes,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Hail the new, ye lads and lasses,
Fa la la, la la la, la la la.
Sing we joyous, all together,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Heedless of the wind and weather,
Fa la la la la la, la la la la.
Take inventory of all your household cleaning chemicals. Reduce clutter by purging any chemicals that are old and/or not used. For environmental reasons, be careful with disposal. Contact your local poison control center for this information. Consider using less toxic cleaning products, such as, vinegar, baking soda and rubbing alcohol.
Memo to Santa's assistants from Head Elf, Creative Department: It has come to our attention that these elf figurines are a joy to make. All you need are pinecones, pipe cleaners, and other simple supplies (no toy-making expertise necessary). Furthermore, the charming sprites have many applications. They can be used as decorations on a mantel, under a tree, or atop presents. In conclusion, we expect the little guys to be big hits this Christmas.
Tools and Materials
- Pinecones, from winterwoods.com
- Wool felt, from magiccabin.com
- Brown pipe cleaners
- Hot-glue gun
- 3/4-inch wooden craft bead
- Acrylic paint
- Disappearing-ink pen
- Needle and thread to match felt
- Shoe template
- Metallic bell bead or very small metallic jingle bell
Pinecone Elves How-To
1. Make arms and legs: Cut 2 pieces, each about 4 inches long, from brown pipe cleaners. Hold a pinecone (about 2 inches long) so bottom end points up. Tuck 1 piece of pipe cleaner between the scales of the pinecone, positioning it as the arms. Position the other piece as legs. Secure with a hot-glue gun. Bend ends of legs to make feet.
2. Make head: Hot-glue a 3/4-inch wooden craft bead (hole side down) to the end of the pinecone. Draw 2 eyes with a black felt pen. Dab a small, dry paintbrush into red acrylic paint; blot. Lightly dab on wooden bead for rosy cheeks.
3. Make mittens: Print and cut out the mitten template. Stack 2 pieces of felt. Place mitten template on top and trace with a disappearing-ink pen; cut out shapes. Repeat to make another pair. With matching thread, use a tight whipstitch to sew together pairs of mitten shapes.
4. Make shoes: Print and cut out the shoe templates. Stack 2 pieces of felt. Place shoe templates on top, and trace with a disappearing-ink pen. With matching thread, use a tight whipstitch to sew 1 teardrop piece to 1 notched piece around the point of the teardrop. At the rounded end, pull the notched ends together to make the shoe's opening. Repeat.
5. Make scarf and hat: Cut out a rectangular piece of felt. For hat, print and cut out template. Trace template onto felt using a disappearing-ink pen. Form into a cone; sew the straight edges together. Use the end of a paintbrush or chopstick to turn the cone inside out. Attach a metallic bell bead by pulling needle and thread up through pointy section and through bell, then back down again; knot underneath.
6. Place mittens and shoes on elf; if arms and legs look long, remove mittens and shoes and trim arms and legs. Put on hat; it should pitch back slightly. Tie on scarf.
Things to do at Christmas time, Visit the Mall and check out how it's decorated.
If you are decorating your home for the holidays on a budget, there are so many possibilities to make your home look gorgeous and festive using inexpensive items.
Billie C.
